When the will of the people doesn't accord with theirs, they try to move the goal posts or reinvent the issue.

When the marriage equality plebiscite told federal politicians what the Australian population want, some Liberals started demanding the inclusion 'religious freedoms' into the bill.

With thousands of Illawarra residents signing a petition to keep the free Gong shuttle, state Liberals start talking about us having an 'entitlement' attitude.  

And after Wollongong council voted unanimously to support the push to keep the shuttle, local Liberals want to re-open the debate.

It's even more galling when we discover that the NSW government, which is refusing to keep funding the shuttle they pledged only a few years ago would stay free forever, is speeding $300,000 a year to transport senior bureaucrats between their offices in Sydney.

Jennie Morris, Wollongong

It’s sad.

I’m hearing so many no voting Christians demanding that people must respect their beliefs.

Yet they are the very same people are the ones who have shown so little respect to others.

Respect is earned, the best way to earn respect is to show respect, it’s not that complex.

Or as someone once said “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.

Doug Steley, Heyfield

Wollongong’s existing free shuttle serves is an incentive toward achieving similar services throughout the Wollongong local government area (LGA).

The move to abolish Wollongong’s “free” shuttle from 2018, should therefore be seen as an obvious disincentive for other citizens within the Wollongong (LGA) to activate around the extension of the free shuttle to the wider community.

Unfortunately, the contribution ‘Hold the bus’ (Illawarra Mercury, Tuesday November 21) suggests this reality has been lost upon its author.

I personally believe the only relevant observation made in ‘Hold the bus’; is that Wollongong (LGA) extends beyond the current free shuttle route.

The inclusion of the inane reference to the patrons of the free shuttle; as representing “the city centre elite” clearly indicates its author has scant, if indeed any actual researched knowledge as to the demographic of free shuttle patronage.

While there is ample socio -economic and demographic evidence in existence within the Wollongong LGA for the free shuttle concept to be both continued and importantly, be extended. The politics of envy approach adopted in ‘Hold the bus’ does absolutely nothing to serve such a cause.  

Barry Swan, Balgownie

\Will leaving the Ramsey bequest to the universities recover what has been lost ? .

As the keepers of education they are a part of the problem. To tackle the problem the net needs to be cast wider.

The critique that rejected humanitarianism is not located in the universities.  The profit motive, the cause of the problem, has been embraced by universities.

There are centres of education not tied to profit wagon that should be considered.

One is the Universities of The Third Age (the U3A).  

Thousands of retirees are enjoying the end life reliving the experiences that enriched past lives which reading and the humanities were an integral part. A rich valuable experience that is being lost.

Reg Wilding, Corrimal